As always, there are many people to acknowledge for their help with this book.

Thank you, Laura, for your confidence, and for letting me steal away to the hotel for writing time. And to my boys, thanks for understanding why Dad has to leave late at night, and for coming to keep me company from time to time.

Thanks to my colleagues at The Table Group. Tracy, for your dutiful and persistent guidance, and your personal and professional dedication to this book. Karen, for listening to my ramblings in the Oklahoma City airport that day when the idea for this book came to me. To Amy, Jeff, Michele, Lynne, and Alison, for making my job anything but miserable. I am blessed to count you all as friends.

Special thanks to my mom and dad, and my brother and sister, for being so supportive and interested in my work, both now and throughout my life. Dad, for sharing your opinions about your occasionally miserable job with me, and for enduring it so I could go to college. And Mom, for your encouragement, and for always listening and helping Dad deal with his work. Vince, thanks for sharing a few miserable jobs with me during our youth. And Ritamarie, for the special work you do with me now.

Thanks to all the employees who were part of my work-related education over the years, from Maitia's Basque Restaurant and California Republic Bank in Bakersfield, California, to Bain & Company and Oracle and Sybase in the San Francisco Bay Area. From the dishwashers and waitresses and tellers to the consultants and executives, you all contributed to my understanding of and passion for finding fulfillment at work.

And I'm grateful to the many managers I had in those jobs: Frank Sr., Frank Jr., Annie, Frank, Steve, Cindy, Brenda, Rena, Torrey, David, Giffin, John, Anne, Jay, Greg, Meg, Rob, Noosheen, Gary, Mike, Nancy, Sally, Mike, Mark, Janet, and Mitchell, and anyone I might have forgotten.

Thanks to the folks at Jossey-Bass/Wiley, for your enthusiasm and commitment. Thank you Susan, Rebecca, Deborah, Cedric, Carolyn, Erik, Rob, Larry, Dean, Stephen, and the many, many others spread around the country who make it possible for my books to come about and find their way to the market.

And I'm always thankful to Jim Levine and all the folks at Levine Greenberg who represent me. Jim, your steady and genuine interest in The Table Group makes such a difference to us, and never ceases to amaze us.

Thanks to the friends and family who gave us feedback and ideas and support relating to this book, especially Al and Patty. Thanks to Greg for making it possible for Tracy to work evenings from time to time to get this book across the finish line. And thanks to Matthew and Tom and Daniel for giving so much of your time and advice without counting the cost. And to my other guy friends—Andy, Barry, Brian, Dante, Eric, Jamie, John, Rob, and Will—for your interest in my work, which means more to me than you know.

Finally, I thank God for the gift of work, and for allowing me to do what I love in a way that serves You.